Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    EmmysSuperheroes GuideSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideBest Of 2025 So FarDisability Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
Back
  • Biography
  • Awards
IMDbPro
Katarina Zhu

News

Katarina Zhu

‘Dangerous Animals’ to Have U.S. Premiere at Rooftop Films 2025 Summer Series: Get the Full Lineup
Image
The weather is just right for another season of the Rooftop Films Summer Series. The beloved annual festival is back, with IndieWire exclusively debuting the 2025 lineup. This year’s Summer Series will run from May 16 through August 22, and will include over 40 events, featuring new independent feature films, short film programs, family screenings, and live performances.

The U.S. premiere of Sean Byrne’s horror film “Dangerous Animals” is a highlight for the Rooftop Films slate; “Dangerous Animals” will have its world premiere during Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes before screening stateside at the Summer Series, with an in-person Q&a featuring director Byrne and cast members Jai Courtney, Hassie Harrison, and Josh Heuston on Thursday, May 22.

Non-profit Rooftop Films annually celebrates independent films and filmmakers with one of the world’s longest running and largest outdoor festivals for indie film. The screenings take place in outdoor venues across New York City’s five boroughs,...
See full article at Indiewire
  • 5/12/2025
  • by Samantha Bergeson
  • Indiewire
Image
Sundance 2025 Review: Bunnylovr, Gen Z Cam-Girl Faces Existential Crisis
Image
Pace everyone’s favorite Greek philosopher, Socrates, if the unexamined life isn’t worth living, then the unexamined cam life — as in cam-girl life — is probably a close second or even a distant third. That lack of self-exploration, of self-examination, and self-analysis permeates writer-director-actor Katarina Zhu’s fascinatingly opaque, ultimately frustrating character study, Bunnylovr, and the singularly named cam-girl character, Rebecca, who Zhu essays in the film. When we first meet Rebecca, a Chinese-American woman in her mid-twenties, she’s in her (un)natural element, going through the usual cam-girl motions, engaging in banal chit-chat with the lonely, horny users on the other side of the flickering computer screen. It’s purely transactional for Rebecca, a needed supplement to her meager income as an office assistant for...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
See full article at Screen Anarchy
  • 2/13/2025
  • Screen Anarchy
“The Final Film Often Grows From a Process of Letting Go of Preconceived Ideas…” Editor Stephania Dulowski on Bunnylovr
Image
In Katarina Zhu’s Sundance Competition debut, Bunnylovr, a New York City-based Chinese American cam girl (played by the writer/director) navigates a number of fraught personal relationships while also caring for a white rabbit, a gift from said client. Working with Zhu to hone and focus these storylines was editor Stephania Dulowski, a Sundance veteran who cut Haley Elizabeth Anderson’s 2024 title, Tendaberry. Below, Dulowski talks about focusing on character, delineating the film’s final beats, and how working within a commercial house has influenced her approach to editing. Filmmaker: […]

The post “The Final Film Often Grows From a Process of Letting Go of Preconceived Ideas…” Editor Stephania Dulowski on Bunnylovr first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
See full article at Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
  • 2/11/2025
  • by Filmmaker Staff
  • Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
“The Final Film Often Grows From a Process of Letting Go of Preconceived Ideas…” Editor Stephania Dulowski on Bunnylovr
Image
In Katarina Zhu’s Sundance Competition debut, Bunnylovr, a New York City-based Chinese American cam girl (played by the writer/director) navigates a number of fraught personal relationships while also caring for a white rabbit, a gift from said client. Working with Zhu to hone and focus these storylines was editor Stephania Dulowski, a Sundance veteran who cut Haley Elizabeth Anderson’s 2024 title, Tendaberry. Below, Dulowski talks about focusing on character, delineating the film’s final beats, and how working within a commercial house has influenced her approach to editing. Filmmaker: […]

The post “The Final Film Often Grows From a Process of Letting Go of Preconceived Ideas…” Editor Stephania Dulowski on Bunnylovr first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
See full article at Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
  • 2/11/2025
  • by Filmmaker Staff
  • Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Sundance Film Festival 2025: All Of Deadline’s Movie Reviews
Image
While the Sundance Film Festival mulls a big move for 2027, the 2025 program, its 41st edition, kicked off January 23 in Utah, and you can look below for all of Deadline’s reviews from the fest.

Sundance founder Robert Redford promised that audiences “can expect a 2025 program that showcases varied and vibrant filmmaking globally.” Running through February 2, the lineup includes more than 85 features and six episodic projects set to screen in Park City, Salt Lake City and online.

Below is a compilation of our reviews from the fest. Click on the movie’s title to read our full take.

Atropia ‘Atropia’

Section: U.S. Dramatic Competition

Director-screenwriter: Hailey Gates

Cast: Alia Shawkat, Callum Turner, Chloë Sevigny, Tim Heidecker, Jane Levy

Deadline’s takeaway: Ripe with aughts nostalgia around the Og iPod, frosted lip gloss and Guy Fieri’s favorite flame-printed shirts, Atropia is ultimately a clever meditation on the atmosphere of war...
See full article at Deadline Film + TV
  • 2/7/2025
  • by Pete Hammond, Damon Wise and Glenn Garner
  • Deadline Film + TV
Sundance Review: Bunnylovr is a Compelling, Messy Character Study in Social Isolation
Image
Sensitive and nuanced, Katarina Zhu’s directorial debut Bunnylovr is a compelling character study that never quite makes sense of the messy life of personal assistant by day / cam girl by night Becca (Zhu). Perhaps that is the point, although the film often edges close to something fascinating only to backpedal––perhaps a feature more than a flaw of Becca, a millennial who finds herself stuck. She’s initially drawn to a mysterious client who first refuses to go on camera with her. The Philly native sends her a rare bunny in the mail to keep her company and then insists on her putting on a show. The connection appears to be driven more by loneliness and isolation than pure fetish, but the film leaves the stranger’s motivations somewhat ambiguous until he lays down the ground rules, at one point telling her this is a transaction.

Living in Manhattan’s Lower East Side,...
See full article at The Film Stage
  • 2/3/2025
  • by John Fink
  • The Film Stage
Bunnylovr Sundance Review — Katarina Zhu’s Directorial Debut is Simple
Image
The Sundance Film Festival offers an exciting in-person experience for all of their films, but to access the demand from people with busy schedules or those unable to make it to Utah for the festival, they’ve recently put their films online. Bunnylovr is the exact type of movie that fits into this new change. It’s a contemplative film about modern digital sex work that feels as aimless as its main character.

Bunnylovr Sundance Review

Zhu stars in her directorial debut as Rebecca, a Chinese-American camgirl with no idea of her future. She has a modest following on a live-streaming pornographic site but has no prospects outside of that. Her dad is dying, and her friend doesn’t seem to like her much at all. This, naturally, leads her into a dark corner of her life after she becomes entranced by a fan who showers her with money, played...
See full article at FandomWire
  • 2/3/2025
  • by Cole Groth
  • FandomWire
"A Queen, a Princess, an Angel!": Rachel Sennott Can't Get Enough of 'Bunnylovr' and First-Time Director Katarina Zhu
Image
Relationships are tested in Katarina Zhu’s directorial debut Bunnylovr. The Asian-American experience is vast and constantly evolving with the times. From the ‘90s staple The Joy Luck Clubto the more recent, Internet-age Dìdi, these films not only break stereotypes associated with the community but also continuously redefine what it means to navigate separate cultures in a foreign land. However, with advancing technology, the unifying power of social media, and a renewed focus on reclaiming cultural roots, today’s generation of Asian Americans differs greatly from those who arrived in the past. The former are often at the forefront of culture and trends, while the latter arrived with little prior knowledge of what America would be like.
See full article at Collider.com
  • 2/1/2025
  • by Dyah Ayu Larasati, Perri Nemiroff
  • Collider.com
'Bunnylovr' Review: A Cam Girl Reveals Our Commodified World
Image
In Bunnylovr, her debut feature, writer-director and star Katarina Zhu crafts a sensitive yet unflinching portrait of Rebecca, a Chinese American cam girl navigating a precarious social world where intimacy is mediated and commodified, and familial bonds are tenuous at best. Rebecca’s world is torn between an increasingly toxic dynamic with a faceless online client and the bittersweet reunion with her estranged, dying father. Set against the fractured backdrop of New York City, Zhu offers a nuanced exploration of how women’s bodies, emotions, and choices are persistently treated as commodities — by family, clients, and even themselves.

The film’s narrative oscillates between Rebecca’s online persona, her strained personal relationships, and her own moments of solitude, weaving a complex tapestry of identity and disconnection. Rebecca tantalizes her audience — on-screen and off — as she maneuvers through a life that demands constant negotiation of boundaries, safety, and dignity. Meanwhile, her faceless client,...
See full article at MovieWeb
  • 1/29/2025
  • by Kai Swanson
  • MovieWeb
Image
‘Bunnylovr’ Review: Debut Feature Struggles With Uneven Pacing, A Thin Plot, & Uninspired Visuals [Sundance]
Image
How do the kids cope with heartbreak and existential dread these days? “Bunnylovr” implies that it is not especially healthy or even safe, and even though the movie doesn’t make this case (that would amount to more depth than this one is willing or able to explore), it isn’t that much better or worse than what previous generations did to hack through it. It’s a story many have seen before, yet most of those other iterations weren’t as listless or disjointed as what writer/director/lead actor Katarina Zhu presents here, nor as visually uninspired.

Continue reading ‘Bunnylovr’ Review: Debut Feature Struggles With Uneven Pacing, A Thin Plot, & Uninspired Visuals [Sundance] at The Playlist.
See full article at The Playlist
  • 1/27/2025
  • by The Playlist
  • The Playlist
How ‘Bunnylovr’ Director Turned an Ugly Breakup Into Her Feature Debut
Image
For writer-director Katarina Zhu, there was no one she wanted to make her debut film with more than her NYU classmate Rachel Sennott. The two relied on each other to get through hard times, including an ugly breakup during the pandemic.

“The things we’ve been through, you don’t even want to know!” Sennott quipped at TheWrap’s Sundance Studio presented by World of Hyatt.

But Zhu does sort of want people to know about one of those things, as her breakup served as the inspiration for “Bunnylovr,” a film in which she plays a cam girl living in New York who, in her isolation, finds herself in a toxic relationship with a client, played by Austin Amelio.

“I was interested in exploring that space that you’re in when you’re super heartbroken and you’re vulnerable, and you’re so much more willing to put yourself out...
See full article at The Wrap
  • 1/27/2025
  • by Jeremy Fuster
  • The Wrap
Variety’s 2025 Sundance Studio Portrait Gallery
Image
The Sundance Film Festival has begun and journalists, actors, directors, writers, agents, producers and film buffs have taken over the once-sleepy town of Park City, Utah for Hollywood’s premiere indie showcase. Together, they hop from screening to screening in hopes of witnessing the next big breakout hit. Some of this year’s most anticipated films include “Bunnylovr” from first-time director Katarina Zhu, “The Thing with Feathers” starring Benedict Cumberbatch and the Dev Patel thriller “Rabbit Trap.”

Between all the glitzy premieres, the Variety Studio presented by Audible remains a destination for actors and filmmakers alike. Stars such as Rachel Sennott, Dylan O’Brien, John Lithgow and Carey Mulligan all stopped by to discuss their new projects and snap a picture in the portrait studio. Check out the photos from this year’s Sundance Studio and see which stars stopped by.
See full article at Variety Film + TV
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Jack Dunn
  • Variety Film + TV
'Bunnylovr' Review: This Intimate Feature Debut Heralds a New Up-and-Coming Visionary | Sundance 2025
Image
Growing up in an age where the world is totally online is weird. Interpersonal relationships end up being completely digital, strangers become friends and you might never know their real names, where they're from, or even what they look like. In Bunnylovr, Katarina Zhu looks at the relationships and life of a Chinese-American camgirl living in New York City. As the director, writer, producer, and lead actor, Zhu does a hat trick in transforming a personal story into an intriguing and intimate exploration of a world that feels both foreign and familiar. Her interpretation of the digital world and the relationships we make there are unique and modern. Her approach to sex work is both non-judgemental and exists more as a vehicle for her character's development and her story's progress rather than the main focus. With a strong supporting cast and a nuanced script, Zhu's feature debut is easily one...
See full article at Collider.com
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Therese Lacson
  • Collider.com
‘Bunnylovr’ Interview: Katarina Zhu Talks Creating a Character ‘More Authentic’ to Her Experiences
Image
As a first-time feature filmmaker, writing and directing is enough to put on your plate, but with “Bunnylovr,” actress Katarina Zhu knew the whole impetus for creating the project was to craft the kind of character she was dying to play. Speaking with IndieWire’s Ryan Lattanzio at Sundance’s IndieWire Studio, presented by DropBox, Zhu was joined by her cast, which includes her friend and peer from NYU and Stella Adler Studio, Rachel Sennott.

Recalling their time in school together, Sennott told IndieWire, “We had to go around in acting school and, like, say a word to describe what energy you gave off. Everyone to me was like, stoner. She could work in a grocery store and be really high. That was mine. But for Katarina, it was like, queen, angel, whatever.”

Though Zhu appreciated this memory, her actual post-grad performance output was hampered by the limited roles available to her,...
See full article at Indiewire
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Harrison Richlin and Ryan Lattanzio
  • Indiewire
Image
‘Bunnylovr’ Review: A Camgirl Struggles to Connect in a Feature Debut That’s Delicate to a Fault
Image
Rebecca, the listless protagonist of Katarina Zhu’s feature debut Bunnylovr, wears loneliness like an oversized coat. It fits a bit awkwardly and seems heavy. When you see Rebecca, or Becca as her friends call her (played by Zhu), walking through New York City’s Chinatown and the Lower East Side, as she so often does in Zhu’s film, you can tell it weighs on her.

Her clients can see it, too. Becca is a camgirl and each evening after clocking out of her day job as an assistant, she performs for strangers online. At the start of the film, a regular in her chat room asks her for her address. He wants to send her a gift, something to make her less lonely. A few days later, when Becca opens her present, she sees that it’s a soft, white bunny.

Premiering at Sundance, Bunnylovr observes Becca as...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Lovia Gyarkye
  • The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
‘Bunnylovr’ Review: Katarina Zhu Plays A Struggling Chinese American Cam Girl In Her Directorial Debut — Sundance Film Festival
Image
Writer, director and star Katarina Zhu’s feature debut is a personal portrait of fulfillment, bringing a nuanced perspective to universal themes of daddy issues, privilege and self-love.

In Bunnylovr, Zhu plays Becca, a twentysomething Chinese American who struggles through life in New York City while moonlighting as a cam girl. Her life takes a turn when a persistent client sends her a live bunny, whom she names Milk. Meanwhile, she runs into her estranged, dying father on the street.

Being fetishized and objectified by everyone in her life quickly takes a toll on Becca. She’s her father William’s (Perry Yung) lucky charm, helping him count cards in the park; she’s her best friend Bella’s (Rachel Sennott) muse, even though the artist ultimately makes her feel violated with her “feminist” creative license; her ex Carter (Jack Kilmer) strings her along as she struggles to move on...
See full article at Deadline Film + TV
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Glenn Garner
  • Deadline Film + TV
‘Bunnylovr’ Review: An Empathetic but Aimless NYC Indie About an Alienated Camgirl
Image
The relationships between humans and animals are mutually beneficial. Feeding a pet is a reason to get out of bed in the morning; taking them out is an excuse to get dressed, go outside, and get some sun. And although she didn’t ask for the responsibility, taking care of a sweet, fluffy white rabbit with enormous eyes is exactly what the protagonist of Katarina Zhu’s “Bunnylovr” needs.

Rebecca (Zhu) is having what you might call a quarter-life crisis. Nearly friendless and struggling to pay rent, she supplements her income as a personal assistant with the money she makes chatting with guys and posting pictures of her feet on a camming website. It’s one of her clients who sends her the rabbit, actually; it’s a weird thing to do, and given the violent arc stories about sex work often take in media, the anticipation is sickening whenever...
See full article at Indiewire
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Katie Rife
  • Indiewire
‘Bunnylovr’ Review: An Intriguing Plunge Into the Aimless Life of a New York Cam-Girl Ultimately Feels Thin
Image
If you don’t know a great deal about bunnies apart from their cuteness, a piece of rabbit-centric trivia you will learn in writer-director Katarina Zhu’s debut feature “Bunnylovr” might just break your heart. Turns out, when bunnies experience a considerable amount of stress or a sudden burst of fear, they might go into a state of shock: Their soft bodies become limp, their floppy ears get cold, and if untreated, they can even die from it.

Rest assured, there are no gruesome bunny deaths to worry about in Zhu’s intimate yet slight portrait of New York-based Chinese American cam-girl Rebecca, delicately portrayed by Zhu herself. But existential dreads and visceral gusts of panic are quietly (and symbolically) everywhere in the film, as Rebecca drifts through her dead-end day job as a personal assistant, and her alternate persona by night as an online sex worker. These anxieties don...
See full article at Variety Film + TV
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Tomris Laffly
  • Variety Film + TV
Rachel Sennott and ‘Bunnylovr’ Director Katarina Zhu On the ‘Chaos’ of Working With Animals: ‘The First Day, the Bunny Peed on the Laptop’
Image
In “Bunnylovr,” a slice-of-life dramedy from first-time director Katarina Zhu, a 20-something-year-old New Yorker named Rebecca moonlights as a cam girl after hours of her day job as a personal assistant. But when one of her clients sends her a gift — a fluffy, white bunny — their dynamic takes a toxic turn.

Without getting into spoilers for the movie, which premieres at Sundance Film Festival on Saturday, there’s a precarious scene involving the tiny, snow-colored creature. But Zhu, who plays Rebecca in addition to writing and directing, promises that no bunnies were harmed during the making of “Bunnylovr.” Working with a live animal did, however, involve a “steep learning curve.”

“On the first day we worked with the bunny, it peed on the laptop. That was difficult,” Zhu said at the Variety Studio presented by Audible. “By the end, I understood what the bunny needed to feel comfortable. It was worth it,...
See full article at Variety Film + TV
  • 1/26/2025
  • by Rebecca Rubin
  • Variety Film + TV
“All the Delicate Layers Gently Rose to the Surface”: Dp Daisy Zhou on Bunnylovr
Image
In Bunnylovr, a Chinese American cam girl tries to reconnect with her father while managing a deteriorating relationship with one of her clients. The film, part of the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, is director Katarina Zhu directorial feature debut. Handling cinematographer duties is Daisy Zhou. Below, she rattles off a number of influences and goes into detail about her camera selection and approach to lighting. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the […]

The post “All the Delicate Layers Gently Rose to the Surface”: Dp Daisy Zhou on Bunnylovr first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
See full article at Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
  • 1/25/2025
  • by Filmmaker Staff
  • Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
“All the Delicate Layers Gently Rose to the Surface”: Dp Daisy Zhou on Bunnylovr
Image
In Bunnylovr, a Chinese American cam girl tries to reconnect with her father while managing a deteriorating relationship with one of her clients. The film, part of the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, is director Katarina Zhu directorial feature debut. Handling cinematographer duties is Daisy Zhou. Below, she rattles off a number of influences and goes into detail about her camera selection and approach to lighting. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the […]

The post “All the Delicate Layers Gently Rose to the Surface”: Dp Daisy Zhou on Bunnylovr first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
See full article at Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
  • 1/25/2025
  • by Filmmaker Staff
  • Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
“Everything That Can Go Wrong Did” | Katarina Zhu, Bunnylovr
Image
Films are made over many days, but some days are more memorable, and important, than others. Imagine yourself in ten years looking back on this production. What day from your film’s development, production or post do you think you’ll view as the most significant and why? The second day of the shoot will be forever seared into my memory, partly because everything that can go wrong did, but mainly because it was the moment I realized just how extraordinary my team was and how grateful I was to be surrounded by them. It was the first day that another actor, […]

The post “Everything That Can Go Wrong Did” | Katarina Zhu, Bunnylovr first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
See full article at Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
  • 1/25/2025
  • by Filmmaker Staff
  • Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
“Everything That Can Go Wrong Did” | Katarina Zhu, Bunnylovr
Image
Films are made over many days, but some days are more memorable, and important, than others. Imagine yourself in ten years looking back on this production. What day from your film’s development, production or post do you think you’ll view as the most significant and why? The second day of the shoot will be forever seared into my memory, partly because everything that can go wrong did, but mainly because it was the moment I realized just how extraordinary my team was and how grateful I was to be surrounded by them. It was the first day that another actor, […]

The post “Everything That Can Go Wrong Did” | Katarina Zhu, Bunnylovr first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
See full article at Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
  • 1/25/2025
  • by Filmmaker Staff
  • Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
Chloë Sevigny, Celine Song, and More Join the Sundance Film Festival 2025 Beyond Film Lineup
Image
The 2025 Sundance Film Festival has unveiled its buzzy Beyond Film lineup with top filmmakers in attendance.

The Beyond Film program will take place in-person from January 24-31; the festival films will become available to audiences across the country on the online Festival Platform throughout the week. The festival will take place from January 23 to February 2 in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah.

Highlights of the Beyond Film panels include conversations with Chloë Sevigny — who appears in two Sundance 2025 films, “Atropia” and “Magic Farm” — Olivia Colman (“Jimpa”), Marlee Matlin (“Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore”), and Steven Yeun, who stars in and produces “Bubble & Squeak.”

“Past Lives” writer/director Celine Song, Daniel Kaluuya, and “Guardians of the Galaxy” writer Nicole Perlman are also among the panelists. A live podcast recording of Elijah Wood and Daniel Noah’s “Visitations” will additionally take place; Wood and Noah both produce “Rabbit Trap,” which premieres at the festival.
See full article at Indiewire
  • 1/13/2025
  • by Samantha Bergeson
  • Indiewire
Daniel Kaluuya, Marlee Matlin, Celine Song, Steven Yeun & More Set For Beyond Film Talks At Sundance
Image
The Sundance Film Festival has unveiled the 2025 lineup for its Beyond Film series of talks and events.

Notables participating, with films in the festival, include Chloë Sevigny, Olivia Colman, Steven Yeun and Marlee Matlin, to name just a few. Celine Song, the Oscar-nominated filmmaker behind Past Lives, and Oscar-winning actor Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah) will also be on hand.

Beyond Film talks fall under the program strands of Power of Story, Cinema Café, Film Church, and The Big Conversation, all of which are free to attend, with the exception of Power of Story. Talks will take place in person from January 24–31, 2025, with most offerings to be available to audiences online the day following the in-person event.

Sundance announced just this morning that the festival will, in fact, move forward this year,...
See full article at Deadline Film + TV
  • 1/13/2025
  • by Matt Grobar
  • Deadline Film + TV
Interview: Producer Tristan Scott-Behrends – Bunnylovr (Work in Progress)
Image
In what seems to be an exploration of duality, Katarina Zhu steps both in front of and behind the camera to craft a portrait of connections and examines the wafer-thin boundary between online identity and real-life presence. Multi-hyphenated artist, actor, filmmaker and producer Tristan Scott-Behrends has been part of the American indie echo system for some time now Bunnylovr follows in the footsteps of last year’s Tendaberry – promoting new female filmmakers. The film would claim a quartet of prizes at the U.S in Progress and not that much time after – it was selected for U.S. Dramatic competition at Sundance next month.…...
See full article at IONCINEMA.com
  • 12/31/2024
  • by Eric Lavallée
  • IONCINEMA.com
2025 Sundance: Hailey Gates, Katarina Zhu & Eva Victor in U.S. Dramatic Comp
Image
Among the batch of ten 2025 U.S. Dramatic Competition offerings we find the likes of actress Hailey Gates’ feature debut Atropia – produced by Luca Guadagnino (she can be seen in this year’s Challengers), we find Katarina Zhu’s Bunnylovr – a project that was selected for this year’s U.S in Progress and Pastel’s Adele Romanski, Mark Ceryak, Barry Jenkins got behind Sorry, Baby – from Eva Victor. Here are the ten films competing for top honors.

Atropia / U.S.A. — When an aspiring actress in a military role-playing facility falls in love with a soldier cast as an insurgent, their unsimulated emotions threaten to derail the performance.…...
See full article at IONCINEMA.com
  • 12/11/2024
  • by Eric Lavallée
  • IONCINEMA.com
Sundance Film Festival 2025 Lineup Unveiled
Image
Our first glimpse at 2025 independent cinema has arrived with the unveiling of next month’s Sundance Film Festival, taking place January 23–February 2, 2025, in person in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, with all of the competition films and more available online from January 30–February 2, 2025 across the country.

Curated from 15,775 submissions from 156 countries or territories, including 4,138 feature-length films, the 87 selected feature-length films include Andrew Ahn’s The Wedding Banquet; Ira Sachs’ Peter Hujar’s Day starring Ben Whishaw and Rebecca Hall; Amalia Ulman’s El Planeta follow-up Magic Farm starring Chloë Sevigny and Alex Wolff; the Josh O’Connor-led Rebuilding, from A Love Song director Max Walker-Silverman; Mary Bronstein’s If I Had Legs I’d Kick You with Rose Byrne, A$AP Rocky, and Conan O’Brien; the Isabelle Huppert-led Luz; Love, Brooklyn starring André Holland; Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius); Elegance Bratton...
See full article at The Film Stage
  • 12/11/2024
  • by Jordan Raup
  • The Film Stage
Image
2025 Sundance Lineup: Latest Projects From Justin Lin, Questlove and Barry Levinson
Image
The 2025 line-up for the Sundance Film Festival has been announced.

This year’s fest features the latest projects from Oscar winners, studio filmmakers, and indie stalwarts like Justin Lin, Ira Sachs, Barry Levinson, and Questlove while the U.S. Dramatic Competition section is made of selections from directors new to the Park City fest.

“The combination of these new voices and some of these filmmakers who might be more household names, speaks to the the power of independent cinema and how, no matter where you are in your career, you are drawn to this community that Sundance has helped build over the years,” Sundance director of programming Kim Yutani told The Hollywood Reporter. Of the 87 feature films announced thus far, 36 titles (41 percent) are directed by first-time feature film directors.

Across the line-up, talents like Jennifer Lopez, Dev Patel, Bowen Yang, Chloë Sevigny, Olivia Colman, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Ayo Edebiri star in fest films,...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
  • 12/11/2024
  • by Mia Galuppo
  • The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Sundance Film Festival’s 2025 lineup includes Rachel Sennott, Dev Patel, Isabelle Huppert, and more
Image
The Sundance Film Festival is still deliberating about where to move in 2027, but in the meantime, the 2025 festival will go on in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah. On Wednesday, the festival announced its Features and Episodic lineup, with a rich selection of independent projects that feature a lot of big names.
See full article at avclub.com
  • 12/11/2024
  • by Mary Kate Carr
  • avclub.com
Sundance 2025 Wish List: 30 Movies We Hear and Hope We’ll See in Utah
Image
The Sundance Film Festival might be moving in 2028, but until then, it’s parking itself back in Park City for another edition of what are expected to be just under 100 features and 50 shorts. The second Sundance under the supervision of new festival director (and IndieWire co-founder) Eugene Hernandez takes place January 23 through February 2, with the lineup expecting to start trickling out next week.

Ahead of the announcement, however, IndieWire has the scoop on films we’re hearing will be in Utah this year and the ones — some long-gestating indies, others secret surprise drops — we’re hoping will pop there. Some expected titles, like Celine Song’s “Past Lives” follow-up “Materialists” or “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” from Kogonoda either aren’t finished yet or are holding out for Cannes and into the fall festivals. Others, like Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s “Hot Milk,” have been on this list before.

David Ehrlich, Kate Erbland,...
See full article at Indiewire
  • 12/6/2024
  • by Ryan Lattanzio
  • Indiewire
2024 U.S. in Progress: Miles Levin’s ‘Under the Lights’ & Katarina Zhu’s ‘Bunnylovr’ Land Major Post-Prod Support
Image
A total of seventeen awards were handed out at this year’s American Film Festival’s U.S. in Progress industry showcase, an event focused on connecting American independent film projects with Polish post-production resources. The two standout winners were first-time feature filmmakers Miles Levin and Katarina Zhu. Their debut films, Under the Lights and Bunnylovr, respectively, took home the top honors – Levin’s tale about a late teen with epilepsy wanting to hit the prom despite the likelihood of having a seizure stars Pearce Joza, Tanzyn Crawford, Lake Bell, Randall Park and Nick Offerman is produced by Vanishing Angle’s Natalie Metzger. Bunnylovr – a NYC set drama about online personas, strained relationships dealing with both isolation and connection stars Zhu in the lead with an ensemble that includes Austin Amelio, Perry Yung, Jack Kilmer, Clara Wong and Rachel Sennott (who also produces).…...
See full article at IONCINEMA.com
  • 11/10/2024
  • by Eric Lavallée
  • IONCINEMA.com
Nick Offerman, Lake Bell Starrer ‘Under the Lights’ Wins Polish Film Institute Award at American Film Festival
Image
Miles Levin’s drama “Under the Lights” received the coveted Polish Film Institute Award at the American Film Festival’s industry event U.S. in Progress, as well as $50,000 cash prize for post-production in Poland.

“It has been an incredibly rewarding and inspiring project to work on. Miles is a force of nature with a clear vision and relentless drive to bring this story to life,” said Natalie Metzger, VP of production and development at Vanishing Angle.

“I’m so honored to have produced it and for it to be part of U.S. in Progress. There’s nothing like this program in America, so we are very grateful it exists. It’s much needed for American indie filmmakers.”

Levin added: “This film has been a 10-year journey and to have the support of U.S. in Progress to help it shine has been very meaningful.”

Miles Levin and Natalie Metzger

In the film,...
See full article at Variety Film + TV
  • 11/9/2024
  • by Marta Balaga
  • Variety Film + TV
Live Streams: Katarina Zhu’s ‘Bunnylovr’ Stars Austin Amelio, Perry Yung, Rachel Sennott & Jack Kilmer
Image
Katarina Zhu‘s feature debut Bunnylovr has according to Deadline wrapped up production (they were shotting in NYC) – we learn that the drama heading to next month’s American Film Festival’s 2024 edition of the US in Progress stars Austin Amelio, Perry Yung, Rachel Sennott, Jack Kilmer and Zhu herself. Bunnylovr was produced by Zhu alongside Fair Oaks Entertainment producers Rachel Sennott and Roger Mancusi with Ani Schroeter. Rhianon Jones and Tristan Scott-Behrends also produced for Neon Heart Productions, which financed the film alongside Radish, Phiphen Pictures, and Rna Pictures.

This tells the story of Rebecca (Zhu), a Chinese-American cam girl who struggles to navigate an increasingly toxic relationship with one of her clients while rekindling her relationship with her estranged, dying father.…...
See full article at IONCINEMA.com
  • 10/16/2024
  • by Eric Lavallée
  • IONCINEMA.com
‘Bunnylovr’: Austin Amelio, Perry Yung, Rachel Sennott & Jack Kilmer Among Cast For Katarina Zhu’s Feature Debut
Image
Exclusive: Newcomer Katarina Zhu has wrapped filming in New York on Bunnylovr, an indie drama that she wrote, directed, and stars in.

Supporting cast includes Austin Amelio, Perry Yung (John Wick: Chapter 2), Rachel Sennott (Bodies Bodies Bodies), Jack Kilmer (Lords Of Chaos) and Clara Wong (Billions).

The film was recently selected to take part in Poland’s upcoming American Film Festival industry sidebar, U.S. in Progress. It’ll be hoping to follow in the footsteps of titles such as India Donaldson’s Good One, which won the top prize at the event last year before making its way to premieres at Sundance and Cannes Directors’ Fortnight.

Bunnylovr tells the story of Rebecca (Zhu), a Chinese-American cam girl who struggles to navigate an increasingly toxic relationship with one of her clients while rekindling her relationship with her estranged, dying father.

The film was developed...
See full article at Deadline Film + TV
  • 10/15/2024
  • by Andreas Wiseman
  • Deadline Film + TV
Wif Selects Filmmakers for Shorts Lab – Film News in Brief
Image
Women in Film, Los Angeles has announced the three teams of women filmmakers that have been selected as inaugural fellows of the Wif Shorts Lab, supported by Google. The teams will be paired with mentors including producers Kira Carstensen and Alexandra Perez and line producer Martha Cronin and receive grants to complete their films.

The projects are “Choices,” from writer-director Kameishia Wooten, producer Robin J. Hayes and line producer Meagann Pallares; “Please in Spanish” from writer-director Patricia Seely and producer Alexandra Clayton and “Silverlake Cleaners,” from writer-director Katarina Zhu.

The projects were selected by a jury including Stephanie Allain, Lake Bell, Margie Moreno, and Talitha Watkins.

American Cinematheque Announces ‘New Jack City’ Special Screening Event

The American Cinematheque has announced a “New Jack City” Special Screening Event on April 9 followed by a Q&a with director Mario Van Peebles.

“New Jack City’ getting shut down in Westwood in 1991 is indicative...
See full article at Variety Film + TV
  • 3/17/2022
  • by Jazz Tangcay
  • Variety Film + TV
Women In Film & Google Set Fellows For Inaugural Shorts Lab
Image
Women in Film and Google have set Kameishia Wooten and Robin J. Hayes (Choices), Patricia Seely and Alexandra Clayton (Please In Spanish), and Katarina Zhu (Silverlake Cleaners) as the fellows for the inaugural Wif Shorts Lab supported by Google.

As part of the program, fellows will benefit not only from Wif’s years of expertise in nurturing creatives, but also from funding support courtesy of Google, including grants to complete production on their short films. Additional production and post-production support is being provided to the filmmakers by Warner Chappell Music, Picture Shop, and Cinelease. The films will be completed by this summer and will be owned by the filmmakers, who will look to submit them to festivals and for award consideration.

The fellows were selected by a jury of industry leaders and veteran producers, including Stephanie Allain, Lake Bell, Margie Moreno and Talitha Watkins. They will be mentored in the...
See full article at Deadline Film + TV
  • 3/17/2022
  • by Matt Grobar
  • Deadline Film + TV
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.

More from this person

More to explore

Recently viewed

Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
Get the IMDb App
Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
Follow IMDb on social
Get the IMDb App
For Android and iOS
Get the IMDb App
  • Help
  • Site Index
  • IMDbPro
  • Box Office Mojo
  • License IMDb Data
  • Press Room
  • Advertising
  • Jobs
  • Conditions of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Ads Privacy Choices
IMDb, an Amazon company

© 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.